The Duchess of Cambridge and her baby bump looked serene in blue tonight at a reception for one of her chosen charities.

Kate took advantage of a warm summer night in London as she arrived in a sleeveless Emilia Wickstead dress in flattering duck egg blue and no coat.

Inside the National Portrait Gallery event, she spoke of the power of art to change people’s lives in a speech to celebrate the work of one of her charities.

Kate told an audience of 250 artists, schoolchildren and supporters of The Art Room, of which she is patron, that it felt “incredibly special” to be at the National Portrait Gallery in London tonight to celebrate the work of the charity.

The Art Room, which uses art to increase children’s self-confidence and independence, was marking its 11th anniversary and launching a new fundraising campaign at the event, attended by artists including Marc Quinn and Jenny Savile.

Kate, who was wearing dusky blue heels and had her hair half up, said: “I am a firm believer in the power of art to make a difference and The Art Room is doing that on a daily basis.

“We all stand here tonight to celebrate this wonderful work.

“I hope that you will join me in congratulating The Art Room and their supporters on these extraordinary achievements.

“As patron of The Art Room, I feel immense pride to see the amazing work that they are doing but I also feel hugely excited to look to a future with more Art Rooms, where many more challenging and vulnerable children will be helped.”

The Duchess is also patron of the National Portrait Gallery – and a portrait of her is currently on display at the venue.

Award-winning artist Paul Emsley created the large head and shoulders painting of the Duchess set against his trademark dark background.

Despite mixed reaction, Kate was delighted with the painting, saying: “It’s just amazing, I thought it was brilliant.”

Kate, an art history graduate, said: “I always love coming to the National Portrait Gallery so to be here tonight for an evening to celebrate The Art Room makes it feel incredibly special.

“When I have been fortunate enough to join Art Room sessions, I have been overwhelmed by the transformational impact they have.

“Vulnerable children flourish in the safe havens that the Art Room provide.”

The Duchess spoke to children who use the Art Room facilities in London and Oxford and accompanied some of them on a private tour of a Man Ray exhibition at the gallery.

At nearly seven months pregnant, the Duchess shows no signs of slowing down her workload.

Kate, who is due to give birth in mid-July, plans to continue royal duties throughout her pregnancy until mid-June.

Her schedule has been organised so she has several public engagements in a row then the chance to rest behind the scenes.

This week she is busy with a visit to a primary school on the Shameless estate in Manchester yesterday and a trip with William and Harry to the Warner Bros studios in Hertfordshire on Friday.

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Prince William and Kate Middleton continue to do good.

The royal couple will visit the offices of Child Bereavement UK at the Clare Charity Centre in Saunderton, Buckinghamshire on March 19, St. James’s Palace has announced.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will meet staff from the charity’s bereavement services as well as its training and fundraising teams.

The parents-to-be will then be introduced to bereaved families involved in the charity’s services.

The charity supports families and educates professionals when a baby or child of any age dies or is dying, or when a child is facing bereavement.

Prince William is a patron of the charity.

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Chi, the Italian gossip magazine that incurred the wrath of the royal family last September when it printed topless photos of a sunbathing Kate Middleton, is at it again — this time publishing the first photos to show the Duchess’ growing baby bump.

The photos were captured by a paparazzo during Kate and Will’s recent sojourn to the holiday island of Mustique.

The Sunday People was first to report the news of the photos’ existence, noting that it turned down an offer to view them “and, like the rest of the British media, will not publish them.”

One photo revealed ahead of the magazine’s Wednesday release date shows a bikini-clad Kate walking on the beach with her husband, an oh-so-slight bump mostly obscured by shadows.

Despite the comparatively benign nature of the photos, they were still intrusive enough to warrant a strongly worded statement from St James’s Palace.

“We are disappointed that photographs of the Duke and Duchess on a private holiday look likely to be published overseas,” a royal spokeswoman said. “This is a clear breach of the couple’s right to privacy.”

It was unclear, however, if the royal family planned to take legal action as they had following last year’s topless shots.

The Duchess, who is said to be due in July, is expected to make her second official public appearance since December’s pregnancy announcement on February 19th. It was speculated that she would use the opportunity to show off her baby bump for the first time.

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Here’s some food for thought: Is Kate Middleton a powerful woman?

No, according to BBC Radio’s 4′s first-ever Woman’s Hour top 100 list, which named the 100 most powerful women in the U.K. and noticeably passed over the Duchess of Cambridge, calling her “influential” but not “powerful.”

Surprisingly enough, Kate’s grandmother-in-law Queen Elizabeth took the top slot, followed by the U.K.’s Home Secretary Teresa May. Angela Ahrendts, the CEO of Burberry, Victoria Beckham, Adele, Stella McCartney and J.K. Rowling also nabbed spots in the top 100.

The list was compiled by a judging panel that included journalist Eve Pollard, conservative MP Priti Patel, Labour politician and peer Oona King (who recently competed on the British reality show Dancing on Ice) and crime novelist Val McDermid.

Speaking about the top 100 list, Pollard confessed the panel was aware of the controversy the mama-to-be’s omission would certainly cause:

“Inevitably not everyone will agree with our 100,” she admitted. “There are some omissions. For example, we had long debates about the Duchess of Cambridge.”

“Is she influential? Hugely. Is she powerful? Not yet,” the former newspaper editor added.

“Most women on our list have power because they have reached a place where they have control—of policy, of direction, of influence, of staff,” she explained. “The panel also included some women who have soft power—the ability to transform the way we think about ourselves.”

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The Duchess of Cambridge is due to give birth in July and could resume her royal duties as early as next month after recovering from her pregnancy sickness, aides said Monday.

The Duchess, 31, had a 12-week scan earlier this month showing that her unborn baby is in good health, prompting St. James’s Palace to announce the expected birth month.

It means that the Duchess was only about six weeks pregnant when she and the Duke were forced to disclose that she was pregnant during her hospital stay at the start of December. She is now thought to be 13 to 14 weeks into her pregnancy.

The Duchess was suffering from a severe form of pregnancy sickness called hyperemesis gravidarum, but has made such a good recovery that she is expected to resume a near-normal official workload from next month.

One insider said: “Although the nature of the Duchess’s condition is that it can come back, she is much better and, health permitting, she will be back doing public engagements in the next couple of months.”

Although the Duchess made a brief appearance at the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year awards before Christmas, she has not carried out a full day of engagements since her pregnancy was announced, and has stayed in the South East, close to her family, rather than spending time with the Duke at their remote farmhouse on Anglesey.

Bookmakers installed July 17, the Duchess of Cornwall’s birthday, as the favourite date for the baby to be born. But those who bet on twins have already lost their stake after the Palace confirmed that the Duchess was carrying only one baby.

A July birth is likely to provide a welcome boost to the economy, because it means that Britain’s favourite “brand” with foreigners, the Royal family, will feature prominently in news coverage as the tourist season gets into full swing.

Mark Di-Toro, of Visit Britain, said: “The challenge for 2013 is to maintain the momentum created last year by the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee, and this will certainly help. The monarchy and Royal palaces are very much a part of the cultural heritage side of the tourism industry, which brings in pounds 4.5 billion every year and is the biggest sector within our tourist industry.

“So to have a royal baby arriving in the summer will be an opportunity to encourage people to visit places associated with the Duke and Duchess.”

Royal aides said the Duchess was expected to return to Anglesey in the next few weeks, but she is not expected to travel abroad either before or immediately after the birth.

The British hospital treating the former Kate Middleton admitted Wednesday it was victimized by a prank call in which information on her condition was given out to a woman impersonating Queen Elizabeth II.

King Edward VII’s hospital in London acknowledged that an Australian radio station made a hoax call to the hospital in the early hours Tuesday — and the hospital fell for it.

The 30-year-old Duchess of Cambridge is pregnant and is being treated at the hospital for severe morning sickness.

A woman using the often-mimicked voice of the monarch asked after the duchess’ health — and was told that Kate “hasn’t had any retching with me and she’s been sleeping on and off.”
“She’s sleeping at the moment and she has had an uneventful night. She’s been given some fluids. She’s stable at the moment,” the kindly nurse informed the supposed queen and Prince Charles on the station’s recording. A dog yaps in the background while the “queen” and her son talk about traveling to the hospital to check in on the patient.

“I would suggest that any time after 9 o’clock will be suitable to visit,” the nurse said. “We’ll be getting her freshened up.”

The hospital says the call had been transferred to a ward and the conversation was held with one of its nursing staff. Its telephone protocols are being reviewed, the hospital said in a statement.

The Australian station 2DayFM has placed the recording of the conversation on its website.

The duchess is spending her third day in the hospital while being treated for acute morning sickness.

Prince William visited his wife at the hospital for several hours on Tuesday, while media from around the world camped outside, seeking news on the royal pregnancy. Officials from St. James’s Palace have said the duchess was not yet 12 weeks pregnant.

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Hundreds of well-wishers lined the streets around the Guildhall to greet the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who are spending the day celebrating the city’s famous university, and some of its charities, schools and hardworking volunteers.

The royal couple arrived by train and were slowly driven through the city so the crowds could catch a glimpse of them.

Cambridge has been awaiting the royal visit since the Queen bestowed the dukedom on her grandson just a few hours before he married the then Kate Middleton on April 29 last year.

Princess Catherine was sporting her new hairstyle – layered long dark locks with a parted fringe – first seen in London last night when she opened a new exhibition at the Natural History Museum.

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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have launched legal action against the French magazine Closer over its publication of topless pictures of the duchess, Clarence House has said.

The celebrity gossip magazine printed pictures of the duchess taken during the couple’s private holiday in France.

A royal spokesman said the legal proceedings had been launched in France and were for breach of privacy.

Closer’s editor said the couple were “visible from the street”.

“These photos are not in the least shocking. They show a young woman sunbathing topless, like the millions of women you see on beaches,” said Laurence Pieau.

She described the reaction as “a little disproportionate”.

A spokesman for the couple, who are on a tour of South East Asia and the South Pacific to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, strongly condemned publication of the pictures.

The duke and duchess, who were staying at the French chateau of the Queen’s nephew, Lord Linley, “have been hugely saddened to learn that a French publication and a photographer have invaded their privacy in such a grotesque and totally unjustifiable manner”, said the spokesman for Clarence House, the Prince of Wales’s office.

The spokesman said the incident was “reminiscent of the worst excesses of the press and paparazzi during the life of Diana, Princess of Wales, and all the more upsetting to the duke and duchess for being so”.

One royal official said the couple could not have chosen a more secluded spot in France for their private holiday.

The magazine’s website says the pictures are of the couple “like you have never seen them before. Gone are the fixed smiles and the demure dresses. On holiday Kate forgets everything.”

A royal spokesman said: “St James’s Palace confirms that legal proceedings for breach of privacy have been commenced today in France by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge against the publishers of Closer Magazine France.”

The BBC’s Peter Hunt said it was thought to be only the second time a royal had sued over such an issue.

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